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Tell Comcast to Broadcast Al Jazeera English Now!

Today’s cause is a petition to Comcast to broadcast Al Jezeera English, considered to be “one of the most influential news networks in the world.” Their reason is that there isn’t sufficient demand. Not so. Read the message from my friends at Change.org to find out the truth of the matter; then sign the petition and pass it on.

Al Jazeera English (AJE) is one of the most influential news networks in the world — it reaches over 250 million households in 120 countries on 6 continents. But, like the people of Antarctica, most Americans don’t have access to AJE.

Why not? Because most American cable companies refuse to broadcast the network.

While most American news networks broadcast American points of view, AJE offers local perspectives on breaking news in North Africa and the Middle East, such as this year’s revolutions in Egypt and Libya. That’s information that many Americans want to see.

In fact, earlier this year, AJE delivered letters from 70,000 supporters to cable companies across the U.S. asking them to broadcast AJE. One company, Time Warner Cable in New York City, agreed to broadcast AJE to its 2 million subscribers. As a result, New York City is one of only 5 places in the U.S. where AJE is available.

Comcast claims it won’t broadcast AJE because there isn’t enough demand, despite the 70,000 people who have already asked them to broadcast the network.

Perhaps the real reason is that Comcast owns a rival network: MSNBC. When corporations like Comcast prevent Americans from having access to divergent points of view, it’s an infringement upon our right to free press. As the folks at Rethink Press say, “We believe democracies need information to flourish.”